James Galloway - The Tower of Sorcery

"I'm not one much for pleasantries, Jervis," she told him.

"True, true. So, you wish to combine our actions?"

"Just along this task, old friend. I do have other operations going. No need to bog you down in those."

"Yes, yes. I do too, to be honest. So, what plan do you have in mind to put Ahiriya in her place?"

"I have a very simple one," she replied with a cheeky smile and a wink. "It's time for us to play a game of Beri Bally Bell."

Jervis laughed. Beri Bally Bell was a children's game where one person was blindfolded, and everyone else wore a small bell. The blindfolded person had to catch someone else, using the sounds of the bells to guide them. But many times, the number of bells and the sounds they made made it difficult for the blindfolded person to single any one out. A coordinated group of bell wearers could utterly confuse the blindfolded person.

"And what will lure Ahiriya into taking the blindfold?" Jervis asked with a smile, a smile that showed his bucked front teeth.

"Nothing short of a little misdirection," Miranda replied with a smile. "Our bells will be information. We pretend that we find something very damaging to the Tower, make sure she hears about it, then set out agents to give her a bit of confusion. The activity should draw out her people, and then we can deal with them."

"Simple, yet very thorough. Now I understand why you're such a worthy opponent, my dear."

"Thank you. It's always nice to be respected by one's peers."

"I think we can work together, my dear. When do you want to start?"

"Tomorrow seems a very uneventful day," she replied with a smile.

"It does indeed. I have a very empty calendar. I think I can pencil in some time."

"I'd appreciate it."

"When are you going to take up my offer and come work for me, Miranda?" Jervis asked. "You're wasting your talents protecting Keritanima. You need to be working for the Crown."

"I'm just not interested, Jervis," she said politely. "I'm happy where I am. Let's leave it at that."

"Well, the offer is always open," he told her.

"I appreciate that."

"I go that way. Have a good day, my dear."

"You too, Jervis," she said mildly, and they parted ways.

A few moments. That was all they were together. To the casual observer, it seemed nothing but a chance meeting, a moment of polite conversation, then a parting of convenience. But the casual observer would never comprehend the titanic magnitude of the simple arrangement that had been formed between the pair of spymasters. A formidable arrangement indeed.

Tarrin had no idea what they wanted him to do that day. He thought that he'd probably be in limbo while they talked things out, but that turned out to be a daydream. They were waiting for him when he returned, and it took a few minutes of fast talking to explain why he wasn't in his room, why he wasn't in his Initiate uniform, and why they'd never seen him leave. But it was fortunate that it was Koran Dar that had been the one to come fetch him, and the man's mild nature and respect for Tarrin's privacy kept him from pressing too hard. That the Council members always came for him themselves was a fair indication to Tarrin of how important they thought he was.

After convincing the Amazon man that he needed food and a bath before starting, Tarrin got everything attended to as quickly as he could. He didn't want to leave the Council waiting too long. He arrived at their chamber not long after leaving Koran Dar, and found the room populated with the Council, the Keeper, and six men and women wearing white robes. Surprisingly, Brel was among them, and the old man's sour face and hard eyes hinted that it wasn't entirely by choice. The other five were pattern Sorcerers, they looked young or in their early middle age, yet their eyes made them appear older-

Tarrin blinked, and looked at Brel. He was old . In fact, he was the only Sorcerer he'd ever seen that looked old. Every other Sorcerer he'd ever seen looked much like Dolanna, or Jula, or Sevren. They appeared mature, but never old. The seven members of the Council, the most powerful and supposedly wisest of the katzh-dashi , all looked like they were Elke's age.

What made Brel different? Why was Brel the only Sorcerer Tarrin had seen that actually looked old? It was a puzzle. Could something stop the Sorcerers from aging? Maybe they'd discovered weaves that retarded aging, or perhaps only made them appear much younger than they actually were. Perhaps it was a weave that Brel couldn't accomplish, because of lack of contact or access to a certain Sphere.

Tarrin stopped, staring at Brel so hard that the man began to look uncomfortable. Why did Brel look old? What made him different from the other katzh-dashi ? He was Master of Initiates, a very important position, so it couldn't be because he lacked access to certain Spheres, or even lacked training or experience. They wouldn't put someone like that in that position, because he may be called upon to deal with an Initiate who had a weave get away from him. No, Brel's experience or ability wasn't what made him different. It had to be something else.

Maybe the puzzle wasn't why Brel was old, but why everyone else was not . He found himself staring at a room full of young faces, or mature faces, and he had no doubt that not a single one of them was really as old as he or she looked. Why had he never noticed this before? Tarrin was usually a very observant young man, because he was raised in the forest and had a hunter's eye.

A fleeting memory of a conversation the day before seemed to answer that puzzle. A talk with the Goddess. Isn't it a rule that no mortal can access more than one order of magic? he had asked, and she had told him yes. But she had also told him that the katzh-dashi were granted certain limited priest powers in order for them to be capable of functioning as the priestly order of the Goddess, since she was forbidden to have priests when she sponsored the Sorcerers.

Isn't it curious that katzh-dashi are allowed to defy the rules? she had asked him. Kind of makes you wonder why.

It was a riddle for him to think about, but in all the confusion the day before, he'd honestly forgotten about it. But he thought he had the answer now.

The stricture stated that no mortal could access more than one order of magic. If the katzh-dashi didn't age and die like mortals, that made them something other than mortals.

And that allowed them to circumvent the stricture in a limited manner, reflecting their limited access to priest magic.

To give her children access to their limited priest magic, the Goddess altered the way they aged, or simply stopped it altogether, to raise them out of the category of mortal . It also had the added boon of keeping her small numbers of Sorcerer children alive.

Brel looked relieved when Tarrin stopped staring at him, and he turned his gaze on the others. Just how old were they? They weren't as young as they looked. They couldn't be. Their scents matched their appearance, so that was no indicator. Perhaps they were that old, but only physically. Scents couldn't lie.

"And what is the matter now , Tarrin?" the Keeper asked in a huffy voice.

"I was just wondering how old all of you really are," Tarrin said calmly, looking around the room. "I've never seen so many of you in one place before, and Master Brel there looks keenly out of place."

That caused a bit of light chuckling and some knowing looks passed between them. "It's not polite to ask a lady's age, Tarrin," the Keeper smiled.

"I'm not polite," Tarrin said bluntly.

That wiped the smile off of her face. "Why we look how we do is something that you'll learn at the last stage of your Inititate," she told him in a dismissing tone. "It's much too hard to explain, and we don't have time to waste on it."